The 1 Question Every Blogger must Ask

September 10, 2011 / Ben Reed / 15 Comments

image via Coach Jeremy

Ever gotten no response after you write a blog post? Frustrating, no?

I’d rather have haters. Or evil trolls.

The ‘no response’ is equivalent to standing in front of a crowd, pouring out your heart, and people just looking right past you. Or worse…as soon as you’re done, people begin chattering with their neighbors about something else entirely.

Oh well. I’ll keep working hard. Hoping something connects. And reminding myself that through writing, my own thoughts are clarified.

Winning

And that’s a win.

If I don’t consistently remind myself what I’m aiming for in my writing (for me: the number one benefit is “clarity”), then I’ll be forever frustrated. But with the “win” defined, no amount of negativity will deter me. It may frustrate me, but it won’t keep me from pressing forward.

Question:

What do you consider a “win” for your writing?

*image via Coach Jeremy

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Jon Stolpe

Good question. I think the answer lies in why are we blogging (and writing) in the first place. Here are some of my prime reasons for blogging:

1. My blog is a place for me to sort out some of my thoughts, ideas, and experiences out loud. It’s for me. That may seem somewhat selfish, but I think it helps to deflect some of the “discouragement” we may feel when we don’t get a ton of comments or traffic to a particular blog post, etc.

2. My blog is meant to glorify God. I want God to be honored by my writing. I don’t always get it right – I’m sure. But if I’m writing for God, the comments of others shouldn’t matter quite so much.

3. My blog is meant to spur others on. This is where it can be tough – if I don’t see traffic or comments on my writing. This is where I need to go back to 1 and 2 above.

Thanks for the thoughts!
- Ben Reed
  
  That’s solid, John. I love your reasons!
Brandon

Great post and question! I personally do not like it when a post does not receive a good amount of discussion…that’s what it is all about!

The whole reason I write is so that God’s Kingdom can be amplified! If that is happening, I’m happy!
- Ben Reed
  
  Just curious, Brandon, how do you measure the amplification?
Lindsey

It can be a little annoying sometimes but remember the posts where you DO get responses and focus on that. My main goal is to help people with my blog and I know that I do that. I’m sure you do that, too. 🙂
- Ben Reed
  
  Praying I do, Lindsey!
Nikki Eidson

I’m with Jon on this one. I write for myself.
Sometimes through writing the blogs, I can just take a step back and put things into perspective. I would even say that more times than not, God reveals new things to me when I write.

I think the “win” moment for me is someone telling me that a post I wrote inspired them or encouraged them. Since I typically write personal posts, things that are relevant to me, I don’t always get comments, but to know that I’m encouraging others by being transparent with my life and struggles is always encouraging.
- Ben Reed
  
  “God reveals new things to me when I write…” I’m so with you on this, Nikki!
Jason Wert

When I click “post”, if I feel I was honest and true to what I felt God tell me to do with my blog, it’s a win.
- Ben Reed
  
  Good stuff, Jason. And honest you are. It’s refreshing, my friend.
Ryan Tate

Hmmm…I’d to love to spark up conversation with every blog post. It would be great to have people respond every time but that wouldn’t be my number one priority for my blogging/writing. I started writing because I had something to say and I needed to process it out. It was a way to clarify my own voice in my head so I could share it others. So a “win” would be when I’ve processed an idea or thought in a clear and compelling way. That isn’t always validated by comments and responses from readers but when I’m able to take what I’ve written and communicate that verbally with someone as well. And a good side effect was that my writing tremendously improved my verbal communication.
- Ben Reed
  
  Taking the written to the verbal…that’s huge, Ryan. And I agree…I’ve seen improvement in my own life in that area, too.
Jason Vana

I had been consumed with a win being about how many comments or tweets would come from the post when I first started blogging, but now a win is if I was able to articulate my thoughts/feelings in a way that it impacts just one person. Changed the way I write and how frequently I write.
- Ben Reed
  
  Don’t feel nearly as constrained to write about the hot topic, do you?!? Freeing for sure.
  - Jason Vana
    
    It’s very freeing. The approval junkie in me would dictate that I write about 9/11 either today (I don’t blog on Sundays) or tomorrow. But I’m not. Not because I don’t have thoughts or feelings about this day, but because I just don’t want to write about it. And that’s ok.

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